With Bombs Bursting in Air, The Falklands Flag Was Not Yet There...

Dear Fellow Earthlings, On the 13th of June 1982 Argentine 155 mm guns, always placed near homes in Port Stanley so as to deter British bomb attacks on them, continued to pound positions in the mountains and now also on the 3.5-kilometer deep (west-to-east) by 1.5-kilometer wide (north-to-south) flatlands to the west of Port Stanley. In the three-phase land assault that had begun two days earlier, moving west to east, the British were now in the third phase. It was evident they would not stop until the Argentines surrendered and Port Stanley was secured. In one final day of air warfare Argentine planes attacked 3 Commando forces on Mount Kent and 2 Para forces on Mount Longdon, but did little damage. Nor were there any British casualties. A Sea Dart fired from Exeter (or, possibly, Cardiff) brought down one of the attacking Skyhawks. The remaining Skyhawks headed west for Argentina, never to return. Along the full periphery of Port Stanley, on the other hand, Harriers carried on relentless attacks, pounding Argentine positions. The British sucessfully employed laser-guided bomb attacks for the first time on this date. Amidst the din of the bombing and under the canopy of rockets and other projectiles that filled the skies above Port Stanley on this not-very- quiet Sunday -- incredibly -- the residents of Stanley attended church, helped one another, observed the "fireworks" displays with wonder, and continued to be Falkland Islanders. Where oh where were the British forces? When would they come marching into Stanley? Steve Walker Earthsaver and Jingles Creator

© 2013 Steve Walker, The Jingles-The Japan Foundation for English Pronunciation, Summit Enterprises.